Do It Your self Herbal Medicine

PART 2. THE HERBS

BLACK COHOSH

ACTAEA RACEMOSA

Black cohosh will become your best friend if you experience painful or uncomfortable menopausal or PMS symptoms. The combination of its active ingredients—tannins, resins, fatty acids, 27-deoxyactein, isoflavones, triterpene glycosides, and formononetin—simulate the hormone estrogen and has been clinically proven to ease fever, cramps, bloating, mood swings, depression, and more.

Did You Know?

North American Indians used black cohosh to treat gynecological conditions, kidney problems, malaria, snake bites, coughs, and colds. Later it was used as a home remedy, as a diuretic, or to trigger menstruation. Herbalists have since primarily focused its use on women’s pain related to the uterus, ovaries, infertility, and labor pains, while it’s also used in alternative remedies for neurological and lung disorders.

Researchers recommend not taking black cohosh if you’re breastfeeding, pregnant, diagnosed with breast cancer, or have hormone-sensitive issues that would be triggered by the herb, which simulates estrogen in the body. If you take the herb internally, take a break after one year. Also stop if you’re experiencing side effects like upset stomach, headaches, cramps, weight gain, spotting, or bleeding between menstrual periods.

Other Names

Baneberry

Black Snakeroot

Bugbane

Phytoestrogen

Rattlesnake Root

Rattleweed

Sheng Ma

Snakeroot

Squaw Root

Locating & Growing

Black cohosh likes to be left in the dark, preferring shade or partial shade over sunlight. It thrives in moist, organic dirt and must experience a complete cycle of warm to cold to warm again before the seeds will germinate. Ensure success by planting mature seeds in fall so it experiences the cycle and up your odds of growing during its first spring.